How do you resend HMRC authority documents if a stamp duty case has been rejected?

Introduction

People often search for this issue when HMRC says it cannot locate an authority letter or has rejected a repayment or review case because the authorisation paperwork is missing or unclear. In practice, this usually means the taxpayer or their agent must resubmit the authority documents so HMRC can deal with the file properly.

Where this happens in a stamp duty matter, the key point is usually procedural rather than substantive. HMRC may not yet have considered the merits of the claim at all. Instead, it may simply be unable to act until it has valid evidence that the adviser or representative is authorised to correspond on the taxpayer’s behalf.

The Question

A stamp duty case had been sent to HMRC, but HMRC said the authorisation had been rejected or could not be found on the file. The adviser’s team had already contacted HMRC and was told that the best course was to resubmit the authority letters, including the taxpayer’s authority and any related authority from another involved party, placing them prominently at the front of the case papers so the case could be reassessed.

Nick’s Explanation

Nick’s explanation, in anonymised form, was straightforward: HMRC had indicated that the authority letter already sent was difficult to locate, so the practical solution was to resend the file with the relevant authority documents placed at the front. The purpose of doing that was to enable HMRC to identify the authorisation quickly and reopen or reassess the case.

The substance of the advice was that where HMRC cannot trace the authority paperwork, the case should be resubmitted with:

• the taxpayer’s signed authority, and
• any additional authority document needed for the representative or intermediary involved,

with both documents clearly positioned at the beginning of the submission.

The Law

HMRC will generally only discuss or act on a taxpayer’s affairs with an agent or representative where it is satisfied that proper authority has been given. That is part of HMRC’s ordinary administrative practice and reflects basic confidentiality and data protection principles.

In stamp duty land tax matters, the substantive legal framework is mainly found in the Finance Act 2003. However, before HMRC considers the substance of a return amendment, repayment request, or other SDLT correspondence, it may require satisfactory evidence that the person making representations is authorised to do so.

Depending on the route being used, authority may arise through:

• a signed letter of authority from the taxpayer,
• a formal agent authorisation process recognised by HMRC, or
• supporting documentation showing the representative’s role in the matter.

If HMRC does not accept or cannot locate the authority, the immediate issue is usually not whether the SDLT position is correct, but whether HMRC is willing to engage with the representative at all.

Analysis

The position can be broken down into a few practical steps.

1. First, identify the real reason for the rejection. If HMRC says the authority has been rejected or cannot be found, that usually means there is an administrative barrier rather than a decision on the legal merits of the SDLT case.

2. Second, check what authority documents are needed. In many cases, HMRC will want a clear signed authority from the taxpayer. If another organisation or intermediary is involved in the submission, HMRC may also want a separate authority document relating to that party’s role.

3. Third, make the paperwork easy to identify. If HMRC has already said a previous authority letter was hard to find, it is sensible to place the authority documents on the first pages of the resubmitted file. A covering letter should also state clearly that authority documents are enclosed at the front.

4. Fourth, resubmit the case in a way that matches HMRC’s instructions. If HMRC has indicated that it will reassess the matter once the authority letters are resent, the submission should follow that direction closely.

5. Finally, keep evidence of what was sent and when. If there is later any dispute about whether HMRC received the authority, a clear audit trail will help.

In other words, where HMRC’s difficulty is locating the authority, the sensible response is not to argue the substantive SDLT issue immediately, but to remove the procedural obstacle first.

Outcome

The practical conclusion is that if HMRC has rejected or stalled a stamp duty case because it cannot find the authority documents, the case should usually be resubmitted with the relevant authorisations clearly displayed at the front of the file. Once HMRC is satisfied that the representative is properly authorised, it can then move on to reconsider the case itself.

Practical Steps

• Obtain a clear signed authority from the taxpayer if one is not already available.
• Check whether any additional authority document is needed for another representative or intermediary involved in the case.
• Prepare a short covering letter explaining that HMRC previously could not locate the authority and that the enclosed documents are placed at the front for ease of reference.
• Put the authority documents on the first pages of the submission.
• Resend the full case papers using the method HMRC has requested or previously accepted.
• Keep copies of the full submission and proof of sending.
• Follow up with HMRC to confirm that the authority has now been logged and that the case is being reassessed.

Conclusion

If HMRC says an SDLT case has been rejected because the authority is missing or hard to find, the immediate fix is usually procedural: resend the authority documents clearly and prominently with the case papers. That gives HMRC what it needs to deal with the matter on its merits.

Legal References Used

• Finance Act 2003
• HMRC administrative practice on agent and taxpayer authorisation

This page was last updated on 22 March 2026.

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